Streaming service Paramount Plus releases the fourth episode of the Star Trek spinoff Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, created by Gaia Violo and set in the post-Discovery 31st century time frame. Holly Hunter stars; Martin Roach (The Umbrella Academy, The Shape Of Water) guest stars. 
Stardate 8688936.8: As the Athena explores a nebula, the cadets explore the art of persuasive speaking, something at which Caleb proves to be unexpectedly adept and Kraag absolutely dreads. Captain Ake summons Kraag, the only Klingon student in the Academy, to her office to relay news to him: a ship carrying his family, among the last surviving Klingon houses, may have been lost with all hands. As the Doctor struggles with whether to allow his debate class (attended by Kraag) to take on the delicate issue of Klingon isolationism as a debate topic, Kraag himself declines the Doctor’s invitation to sit out the class debate. As Deram tries to help boost Kraag’s confidence for public speaking, and Cadet Master Lura Thok, who is half Klingon and half Jem’hadar, tries to offer Kraag some uncharacteristically quite advice, Admiral Vance points to a possible solution: a planet so similar to the lost world of Qo’nos that it would be perfect for the Klingons to colonize. Captain Ake re-opens negotiations with an old Klingon friend to try to steer their resettlement efforts toward this planet, but both she and Kraag must come to grips with a simple fact: the Klingons don’t colonize… they must conquer.
written by Gaia Violo & Eric Anthony Glover
directed by Doug Aarniokoski
music by Jeff Russo
additional music by Dan the Automator, Sam Lucas, Alex Yewon and Antonio Andrade
Cast: Holly Hunter (Captain Nahla Ake), Sandro Rosta (Cadet Caleb Mir), Karim Diane (Cadet Jay-Den Kraag), Kerrice Brooks (Cadet SAM), George Hawkins (Cadet Darem Reymi), Bella Shepard (Cadet Genesis Lythe), Zoe Steiner (Cadet Tarima Sadal), Oded Fehr (Admiral Charles Vance), Gina Yashere (Lura Thok), Brit Marling (Computer Voice), Stephen Colbert (Digital Dean of Students), Robert Picardo (The Doctor), Rebecca Quin (Lt. Ya), Ken Barnett (Lt. Hayden Thriss), Martin Roach (Drekol), Obel Wocak (David Keeley), Dorothy Atabong (L’vanna), Tremaine Nelson (Thar), Sean Jones (Enok), Nicole Dickinson (Lt. Atlee), Michael Brown (Lt. Dandrid), Avaah Blackwell (Haile), Joseph Chiu (Ensign Weldu), Joseph Messina (Cadet Holloway), Layina Chano
(Cadet Kohli), Kieron River (Cadet), Arthur Ortiz (FNN reporter), Rekha Shankar (DOT)
Notes: The Doctor is not only a fan of Federation legal icon Judge Aaron Satie (TNG: The Drumhead), but apparently, by quoting the lyric “before you were a twinkle in your father’s pants”, a fan of the ’90s power pop group Jellyfish and their song “Now She Knows She’s Wrong” from the excellent 1990 album Bellybutton, furthering the Doctor’s reputation as a man of refined musical taste.
LogBook entry by Earl Green